The Case of the Unusual Thief
by UndoubtedlyTheWine
Summary: A series of thefts have been happening in past 24 hours and the intriguing case is giving CID team a headache. But they are quite determined to find this thief who is no ordinary one. Two shot.
1. Chapter 1

**The Case of the Unusual Thief**

 **Chapter 1**

A man was walking with brisk steps towards a huge glass building. He was quite handsome looking with over six feet tall. He had blue eyes and reddish-brown hair which ruffled with the evening breeze. He carried a battered looking suitcase in one hand.

When he finally reached his destination, he stood looking at the glass building quite apprehensively. This would be his second visit in a week. He wasn't sure he wanted to meet the stern woman upstairs for the second time.

'It's all because of you' the man whispered to nobody in particular which struck the guard as very odd, who had been observing that man for quite some time now.

'Can I help you with something?' the guard finally asked the man.

The man nodded. Trying not to look too suspicious he said, I need to go down to Level one below. Can you tell me the way?'

'Take the staircase on your left. But there is nothing there! A man who was in garment business owned a little shop but then one day he shut it and never came back. It has been years since the owner moved out.' said the guard.

'That's fine. Thank you so much' said the man. And without further ado, he walked away towards the staircase on the left.

* * *

 **CID Bureau, Mumbai -**

A mess of newspapers lay on one of the desks. The headline in bold black letters read _Whodunit! Robbery hits city of Mumbai, Police clueless about the culprit._

Another newspaper lay blocking the full report of the first one which bore the headline: _Five thefts_ _in 24 hours, CID steps in to solve the intriguing case._

ACP Pradyuman was pacing back and forth in the CID Bureau, a frown etched on his face.

Daya let out an impatient sigh and chanced a glance at Abhijeet who was looking irritable.

'I just don't get it! How can this thief vanish into thin air every time?' ACP Pradyuman said suddenly, making them all jump.

'Sir' Freddy came into the Bureau looking disappointed.

'What have you got for us, Freddy?' asked ACP Pradyuman.

'Nothing interesting sir' said Freddy gloomily. 'This robbery too was carried out exactly like the previous ones. All jewellery missing, no fingerprints and nobody's seen anything out of ordinary'

'How is this possible? How come nobody spotted anything suspicious?' said Daya.

'Sir, I think these robberies are carried out by the same person. The culprit is following almost the same pattern of robbing the houses. All the houses look like they have been struck by some natural disaster with everything strewn on the floor. This indicates that burglar conducted a thorough search before doing the actual stealing. Surprisingly, he doesn't leave a single clue as to how he gained entry in the house nor does he leave any fingerprints.' said Abhijeet.

'You are quite right but who could that be? Is it only one person or a gang? We need to get to the root of this as soon as possible' said ACP Pradyuman.

'I can't think whose house the thief would target next. How are we going to track him down if we don't know his next move?' said Daya.

'Maybe we should try to decipher how he chooses his targets. Maybe they know each other or maybe they are in the same profession... I don't know. But's that's the only thing I can think of at the moment' said Abhijeet.

'Sir, unfortunately, none of the victims had CCTV cameras in their houses. Else we would have caught the thief by now' said Freddy.

'I think Abhijeet has got a point. There must be something in common among all the victims. And if we can predict the place of next robbery, we will have the thief behind bars in no time.' said ACP Pradyuman.

'He seems to have targeted a particular locality. All the victims lived quite nearby' said Abhijeet.

'Well, I think there is nothing we can do about it at the moment. We will try the find that common thread tomorrow' said ACP Pradyuman at last and Abhijeet grinned triumphantly.

'Thank god, he left us early' he muttered to Daya and they descended down the staircase.

'Seems you are quite in a hurry' said Daya.

'But I told you yesterday! I am taking Tarika for a dinner date tonight, remember?' said Abhijeet.

'Oh, right. I totally forgot. Lucky we got off early. Well, have a great time.' Daya smiled at him.

'Yes, I will see you tomorrow then' said Abhijeet as they bid goodbye

Whistling softly to himself, Abhijeet drove home. He had promised that he would pick up Tarika in next one hour.

Dinner with Tarika was a lively and rather romantic affair. They talked and laughed and indeed had a great time. By the time, Abhijeet dropped her home, the moon had come out in the sky. Tarika shivered in the night breeze.

When they were a few feet away from her door, Tarika turned to Abhijeet, 'Thanks for the lovely dinner Abhi! I really enjoyed it'

'My pleasure' said Abhijeet in a very gentlemanlike voice.

'Well, goodnight then' said Tarika with a shy smile.

'Tarika!' Abhijeet called as she turned to go.

'What?' she said.

Abhijeet moved towards her and whispered, 'May I?'

Tarika merely smiled and Abhijeet pulled her into an embrace.

'I had a great time tonight and I wish there would be many more such times in days to come. Goodnight' he said.

Tarika felt a warm glow inside her. She waited to see Abhijeet walk back towards his car. Then she turned and marched towards her house. She withdrew the keys from her pocket, ready to insert them in the lock but stopped abruptly. The door was slightly ajar.

'Abhijeet? Can you just come over for a minute?' she called.

'What happened? Anything wrong?' asked Abhijeet, making his way back towards her.

'The door is open. I am sure I had locked it before leaving' said Tarika frowning.

'Okay, let's go inside and see' said Abhijeet and he pushed open the door.

As the stepped over the threshold, Tarika switched on the light and gasped.

The sight before them was not pretty. The house was a total mess.

'I can't believe this! Someone's broken into my house!' Tarika shrieked.

She hastened to go further but Abhijeet stopped her. 'Wait! The burglar might still be inside.'

They withdrew their guns and moved from one room to another cautiously. There was no sign of anyone.

'What the hell!' Tarika exclaimed as she cast a look across her bedroom.

Clothes had been thrown higgledy-piggledy all over the floor. The cupboard doors were open. Drawers had been pulled out and their contents emptied.

'Check what's missing' said Abhijeet.

'My jewellery's gone! And so is my silverware' said Tarika looking panic-stricken.

'What about the cash?' asked Abhijeet.

'Oh my gosh! Abhijeet, this couldn't possibly be the work of the burglar who is desperately trying to catch, could it?' she asked.

'What makes you think so?' asked Abhijeet.

'Look at this, my house is ransacked just like the other victims! Things were strewn on the floor and there is no sign of forced entry. The front door lock is all intact. And - and my house isn't exactly far from the place where the other victims reside, is it?' she asked.

'Yeah, maybe... you are right!' said Abhijeet.

'God, what do we do now?' said Tarika.

'Let's go and check each room carefully. Meanwhile, I will inform the rest of the team. You go and check the kitchen and I'll have a look around the living room' said Abhijeet.

Abhijeet called Daya and told him about the entire incident. He assured Abhijeet that he and the others will reach there in a short time.

Abhijeet scanned the living room carefully. It was as messy as the rest of the house but all the electronics were untouched. It seemed like the burglar was only interested in jewellery.

'Abhijeet, this is something really weird but he hasn't taken my cash. I had a lot of cash in my cupboard drawer but it's untouched.' said Tarika appearing in the living room, carrying a wad of money bills in her hand.

'Really? That's totally weird!' agreed Abhijeet.

'And it's really stupid of him or her whoever it is. My imitation jewellery is gone too! I mean he's not going to get money by selling fake jewellery, is he?' said Tarika.

'I think he grabbed everything he saw. He wouldn't have had a lot of time obviously. He can always throw away the fake stuff later.' said Abhijeet shrugging.

Tarika let out a small sob. 'He took all of it. He took every single jewellery I owned! Imagine how would I look when I come to bureau tomorrow without my earrings and pearl necklace!'

Abhijeet looked at her incredulously. He couldn't believe Tarika was unhappy not because her house had been robbed but because she wouldn't be able to wear any jewellery to the bureau the next day.

'Women!' he muttered shaking his head.

'What?' Tarika asked glaring at him.

'Oh it's alright Tarika!' he said crossing the room in two long strides and putting a comforting arm around her, 'I know you are... er... a bit touchy about your jewellery but you can always buy a new one. I will gift you, I promise. And when we arrest the thief, you can have your old stuff back as well'

Tarika gave him a teary smile and nodded.

'Why don't you go and check the kitchen? I have informed Daya. The others will be here any minute now' said Abhijeet.

'Okay' said Tarika and walked away. As she was about to enter the Kitchen, she thought he heard a loud thump. Taking a deep breath, she stepped inside.

The kitchen had not been spared either. Flour packets were torn open, Tin food cans were lying on the floor. A few of her glass bowls were smashed. And water had been spilt in the corner.

As Tarika's gaze flitted across a cabinet fitted in the wall, she froze.

The Cabinet was slightly ajar. A slender hairy hand was protruding out of the gap. It had sharp black coloured claws. Tarika suddenly realised where the thumping noise was coming. She didn't know what it was. 'Damn you! Not now! I don't need a creature hiding in her kitchen Cabinet at the moment!' she muttered.

Recoiling slightly at the sight of the hairy hand, Tarika yelled, 'Abhijeet! Get back here. Some creature is hiding in my Cabinet. I want you to help me drive him out.'

And then everything happened in a flash. The Cabinet flung open and the hairy creature leapt outside. Tarika let out of the blood-curling scream and leapt out of the way, the creature lunged past her, outside the kitchen, knocking a few jars of the rack.

Tarika steadied herself, panting slightly just as Abhijeet rushed inside.

'What is it? You scared me!' he said.

'There was something hiding in this Cabinet. It was all black and hairy and had sharp claws. I don't know what it was! Never seen anything like it before. It pounced on me and that's why I screamed.' said Tarika breathlessly.

'Probably a cat or a very big rat.' said Abhijeet.

'It wasn't a cat! And rats don't have claws!' snapped Tarika.

'Okay, whatever' said Abhijeet impatiently. 'It's gone now, isn't it? Let's not worry about that creature now. Anything missing in here?'

'I don't think so' said Tarika looking around.

'He smashed few of your glass plates' pointed Abhijeet.

'Woah! Wait a minute! My spoons, they are missing!' said Tarika.

'Spoons?' Abhijeet repeated, dumbfounded.

'Yeah, they were brand new and all shiny, I had brought them yesterday' said Tarika frowning.

'New and shiny...' Abhijeet muttered staring into the oblivion.

'But honestly, spoons? Why on the earth does he need to steal spoons?' said Tarika in an amused voice.

'Gosh! How could we all have been so dumb? We have got an important clue!' exclaimed Abhijeet.

'Really? What?' said Tarika looking totally lost.

'The other victims of this burglar had complained of missing jewellery. But the cash was untouched just like in your case. I remember one victim who was a woman had complained that one of her antique statues was missing which was fitted with sparking gems. And now you say your jewellery is gone and the metal spoons too which were brand new and shiny' said Abhijeet smiling.

'Yeah, but I still don't get you.' said Tarika.

'Tarika, our culprit is a kleptomaniac!' said Abhijeet.

'A -what?' said Tarika.

'It's kind of a rare disorder where a person has an irresistible urge to steal shiny, glittering or sparkly things. There is usually an impulse to steal and the economic motive is usually absent in such cases. It's just a hunch, but it kind of makes sense, doesn't it?' said Abhijeet.

'Yes! It fits in rather perfectly! I mean he stole all the shiny stuff and there was no economic motive so he left the money untouched! It totally makes sense! Abhijeet you are a genius!' said Tarika as the doorbell rang, announcing the other CID officers' arrival.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N –** Words written in **Bold** are explained at the end of the chapter. I haven't taken into account the actual timeline. Sorry for that.

 **Chapter 2**

The man had who had made his way towards the basement stood in the plush office unable to look into the eyes of the woman glowering at him.

'I have informed the Pest Advisory Bureau, Mr Scamander. They are sending someone along. And mind you I will personally make sure that you pay a hefty price for your negligence' she said angrily.

'If you would just let me go for some time, I will find him. I have a hunch where he would be and trust me I my hunches about him are almost always right' he said.

'You are not going anywhere until the officers from Pest Advisory Bureau get here!' snapped the stern looking woman.

He sighed. He remembered sitting before the same woman 48 hours ago...

 ***** FLASHBACK *****

 **Two days ago, Morning, 10 am -**

Newt Scamander was seated in a plush office of Meena Iyer who was the head of Department for Control and Regulation of Magical Creatures, Ministry of Magic, India.

A few minutes later, the door opened and Meena Iyer bustled inside. She nodded at the sight of Newt and said, 'I am sorry to have kept you waiting. You must be Mr Newt Scamander?' she asked.

'Yes.' said Newt and gave her a firm handshake.

Newt observed that Meena Iyer was an attractive woman. She had a slim figure and jet black hair which she had tied in a tight bun. She had a rather stern looking face.

'So Mr Scamander, the purpose of your visit to India is for the search of **Occamy** Eggs, I presume?' said Meena Iyer.

'Yes, Occamys are natives to India and Far East so I am really desperate to find them as soon as possible. There were rumours that their Mother was killed. If the eggs hatch and the baby Occamys break lose then they could be dangerous to the magic as well as Non- magic people.' said Newt.

'You are a **Magizoologist** by profession, is that correct?' asked Neelam Iyer.

'Yes' said Newt.

Well, I have heard a lot about you' said Meena Iyer casting a wary eye on Newt Scamander's battered brown coloured suitcase.

Newt Scamander pursed his lips but didn't say anything.

'Mr Scamander, last time when you were in New York, few of your creatures broke loose and wreaked havoc on the New York streets.' said Meena Iyer frowning.

'That's not true. I had to let them loose to tackle a particular emergency. I am sure you must be aware of what it was? Madame President must certainly have mentioned the facts to you' said Newt.

'Yes of course. I am proud as to how you tackled the dire situation' said Neelam Iyer.

'All my creatures are very well behaved, Madam' said Newt patting his suitcase.

No sooner had he said that, there was a loud click. The left silver strap of his suitcase had sprung open on its own.

Neelam Iyer raised an eyebrow, as Newt snapped it shut quite hastily.  
'The lock needs to be fixed' he said.

'I see' said Meena Iyer, looking suspiciously at him.

They continued staring at one another for a minute and then Meena Iyer said, 'Let us get down straight to business Mr Scamander. Whatever happened in New York the last time you were there, should not happen again. We need to care and protect magical creatures but not at the cost of exposing ourselves to **Muggles**. We have to be careful. And I am warning you, if you use magic in front of Muggles -'

'I won't! There would be no need for that' Newt interrupted.

'Alright, I'll take your word for it. But mind you, any funny business involving the Muggle-' Meena Iyer stopped as the tattered suitcase shook slightly.

'What have you got in there?' she questioned.

'It's must be one of my creatures' said Newt and looking at the expression on Neelam Iyer's face, he added, 'Don't worry. Nothing will go wrong'

'Okay, I have got a few areas marked on this map for you to look for the Occamy Eggs' said Neelam Iyer handing him a folded map.

Newt studied it for a minute and then got up to leave. 'Thank you' he said shaking her hand one more time and left the office.

Newt found the area marked on the map quite quickly. It was an area of Muggle residence. The houses were huge and lavish. They were situated at a distance of several feet amongst one another in midst of the tall, misty trees. Every house had its own garden with well manicured lawns. Even in broad daylight, Newt could hear the rats scurrying here and there and a distant hoot of an owl.

His heart hammered. This was a perfect place for an Occamy to lay her eggs. The locality was quite peaceful, away from the crowded streets. Newt was sure the Occamy nest would be somewhere nearby. He hoped that the Occamy eggs hadn't hatched yet.

He searched the area carefully but till afternoon, he hadn't had any luck so far. Then he came across a house which appeared uninhabitated. The windows were grimy and dust had settled on them. Dead leaves littered the ground. A window had been smashed and cobwebs hung here and there.

Vines had overgrown on the walls partially blocking the house. Newt moved closer to it noiselessly. He put the suitcase on the ground and pulled out his wand. He looked over his shoulder making sure no one was watching him.

"Lumos" he muttered and a beam of light fell on the floor. The sight of a dead rat on the floor set his heart racing in excitement. He would have to go and see around the house.

Pushing himself through the overgrown tree branches with twigs creaking under his feet, he made his way slowly around the house.

His abandoned suitcase wobbled slightly. Newt had strapped it shut with a tiny lock to prevent the creatures inside it from escaping. There was a slight crunching noise and a bright green creature which looked like a Stick Insect came into view. It had long sharp fingers and brown eyes. It resembled a tree twig except for the fact that it was alive. It was none other than Newt's **Bowtruckle** named "Pickett".

The Bowtruckle toyed with the lock with its long slender fingers. And the lock clicked open. The suitcase wobbled once again and then without warning, it sprang open. It was full of clothes and a few papers but something hairy moved inside it. The hairy creature looked like a cross between a mole and a duck-billed platypus. A moment later the creature leapt out of the suitcase and looked around it. And then it jumped and ran outside with agile steps.

Newt Scamander, totally oblivious to what was happening outside looked beneath the thick blanket of trees. And then, he spotted them at last. There were three huge Occamy eggs - all with thick silver shells.

Feeling elated, Newt scooped them up one by one. They were quite heavy. He carefully carried them outside feeling extremely happy that he had accomplished his mission.

But when he cast one look at his suitcase which was propped open on the ground and then at his Bowtruckle - Pickett playing with the broken lock and feigning innocence, the floor shook beneath his feet.

He rushed towards the suitcase and placed the Occamy eggs carefully inside. The Bowtruckle climbed up taking hold of his pants and jacket and disappeared underneath the sleeve of his jacket.

Newt didn't know what was he expecting but he wasn't mistaken.

'Damn you!' he muttered angrily. The **Niffler** had escaped and Newt knew that he was going to be in deep trouble.  
 **  
*** FLASHBACK OVER ***  
**  
Newt came back to his senses when Meena Iyer slammed the Muggle Newspaper hard on the table.

He cast a wary glance at the headlines printed on it: _Whodunit! Robbery hits city of Mumbai, Police clueless about the culprit._

'Look what the Niffler's done! I had warned you Mr Scamander! You are just too lenient with those creatures of yours. And by the way what were you thinking when you kept that Niffler as a pet? Don't you know that they are highly dangerous to keep as pets? They are often destructive and wreak havoc all over!' said Meena Iyer angrily.

Before Newt could reply, the flames in the fireplace turned green and a slender revolving figure came out of it. It looked quite familiar.

'Tony Graves from Pest Advisory Bureau' the man introduced himself brushing ash off his robes.

'You are late Mr Graves' said Meena Iyer.

'Yes, I was tied up with work. I sincerely apologize for the delay.' said Tony.

'Alright, let's get down to business then. This man here Mr Newt Scamander is a Magizoologist and was here to search for Occamy Eggs. And he let his pet Niffler loose -'

'I didn't set him loose. He escaped!' Newt interrupted.

'It's all over the Muggle news. There have been five robberies in last 24 hours!' said Meena Iyer ignoring Newt's interruption.

Tony Graves knew Newt Scamander quite well. But seeing the angry woman in front of him, he thought he shouldn't show signs of recognition. Newt seemed to be thinking on the same lines.

'Well, I think we ought to find that Niffler first' said Tony calmly.

'That's okay but isn't he going to pay for what he's done? I mean setting a Niffler loose near Muggle residence accounts for a serious offence' said Meena Iyer.

'I am sorry Madam, but that is out of my hands. He will face trial in London court but before that I have orders to capture that Niffler before it does any more damage' said Tony.

Meena Iyer looked like she wanted to argue further but she kept quiet.

'Fine, you two better make a move then' she said finally.

Tony Graves and Newt thanked Meena Iyer and hurriedly left the office. Once outside, Tony faced Newt looking furious.

'Letting a Niffler loose in Muggle locality… you think that's funny do you?' Tony asked him.

'I swear I didn't set him free. I had locked my suitcase. The lock broke and he escaped' said Newt.

'How did the lock break then?' Tony asked.

'It was the Bowtruckle - Pickett. He helped him escape' said Newt.

Tony sighed. 'Alright, we can talk over it later. First we've got to catch that goddamn Niffler. Where do you reckon he would be?' Tony asked.

'In that locality where I went looking for the Occamy Eggs… the robberies have occurred there as well. I am sure he is hiding there and nicking shiny stuff in one of the houses' said Newt.

'Alright, let's go and find him then' said Tony

 **O- o- o- o  
**  
 **Tarika's House -**

Abhijeet narrated the entire evening's events to Daya who had arrived at Tarika's house.

Daya let out a low whistle. 'You are right Abhijeet! Kleptomania is indeed an important clue' he said.

'Where are the others?' asked Tarika.

'I spoke to ACP sir. He said there was no point coming here since the burglary has already happened. They will come here in the morning. Besides he was in a bad mood coz DCP sir has taken matters in his hands now.' said Daya.

'Damn! Well what we do now is -' Abhijeet stopped talking abruptly. Everyone listened with bated breaths. They had heard a loud thump.

A moment of silence and then they heard it once again - very loud and clear this time.

Thump.

Thump.

Thump.

'What the hell is that noise?' said Daya.

'I think I know what it is. Abhijeet, t - that hairy creature is still inside my house. Please let's check all the rooms once more, shall we? I won't be able to stay here alone if I don't make sure he is not lurking in any of my other Cabinets.

'Right, let's check then' said Abhijeet grimacing at Daya.

Tarika and Abhijeet climbed the staircases to check the upper rooms while Daya hurried off towards the study downstairs.

'Can you check that Closet in the right corner?' Tarika asked him.

'Sure' said Abhijeet.

He opened her closet and gaped at it for a few minutes for it was filled with mounds and mounds of clothes. Purses were hung up from a hook. The other half had an assortment of gloves, scarves, and hats were carelessly tossed into a drawer.

'Gosh! Women need so much stuff! The entire contents of my closet would fit in half of this space' thought Abhijeet.

His eyes flew over from clothes to shoes, to scarves, to perfume bottles and finally to a feathery, duck shaped jewellery mannequin with numerous chains hung around its neck and wrist.

'Nothing here' Abhijeet muttered half closing the door but stopped abruptly.

Wait... A feathery duck shaped jewellery mannequin? That certainly didn't feel right. It just wasn't a sort of a thing Tarika would use as far as Abhijeet knew her.

'Um... Tarika you haven't got a feathery jewellery mannequin recently, have you?' asked Abhijeet.

'No, obviously not!' said Tarika looking at him.

'Hmm, I thought not. But it's right here in your closet' said Abhijeet and opened the closet door just in time to see that the feathery duck was alive and was putting last of Tarika's chain into his stomach pouch.

'What the hell?' Abhijeet's jaw dropped open.

'GOSH! ABHIJEET IT'S THAT CREATURE! I JUST DON'T BELIEVE IT! HE'S NICKING MY STUFF!' Tarika screamed.

There was a moment's pause when the duck like creature (The Niffler) looked at Abhijeet and then jumped outside the closet without warning.

'ARRGGGGH! CATCH HIM!' Tarika yelled as Abhijeet and Tarika tore after him, the Niffler hurtling ahead at surprising speed, knocking things out of his way.

Daya had come out hearing the commotion and when Tarika motioned him to catch the Niffler, He lunged - only to land on the floor with a crash.

'Daya, are you Okay?' Abhijeet yelled as Tarika saw the Niffler sneak into her living room.

Tarika grabbed a broom and the three of them tried in vain to catch the Niffler which kept on escaping from their clutches, smashing plates, turning chairs and throwing stuff on the floor in the process.

'This is getting out of control! What is that thing?' Daya panted as he ran after the Niffler.

Their shrieks and yells were carried outside which was a good thing. When Newt and Tony Graves drew nearer to Tarika's house, they heard their terrified voices and Newt knew he was at the right place. They ran towards the house and sure enough Newt saw his Niffler toppling a lamp as it tried to escape.

Fortunately the front door was open and Newt and Tony burst inside much to the shock of its occupants.

'Who are you?' Abhijeet asked and the three of them turned to look at the new arrivals forgetting about the Niffler for a moment.

'Look at this place! It looks like it has been struck by an earthquake' Tony exclaimed.

'My name is Newt Scamander and this is Tony Graves. We have been informed that a dangerous beast is set loose in your house and we are here to capture him' said Newt.

'Oh thank god! What is that thing? We have been chasing it for almost an hour now' said Tarika wiping sweat beads off her forehead.

'If you allow me to just -' said Newt.

'Yes, please' said Tarika at once.

'How are you going to do it Newt?' asked Tony.

'We have no choice' said Newt drawing out his wand.

'Wha - wait! You c - can't! We will be in so much trouble' said Tony shocked.

'We will be in even more trouble if we don't stop him now' said Newt.

Before Tony to argue, Newt turned to Tarika and asked, 'Where did he go?'

'T - The kitchen' said Tarika pointing him out.

Newt and Tony hurried inside followed by Abhijeet, Daya and Tarika.

Newt spotted the furry animal in no time and soon the room was full with red and gold lights as Newt and Tony shot stunning spells at the Niffler, destroying whatever was left of Tarika's kitchen.

'What is he doing?' Tarika bellowed over the din. Daya shrugged too awestruck to speak while Abhijeet looked dumbfounded.

Finally, about half an hour later, Newt's clever freezing charm struck the Niffler and he swiftly caught it with one hand.

'And now' said Newt 'the most important part'

He moved towards the table and turned the Niffler upside down. Then he shook it a bit and Daya, Abhijeet and Tarika gasped.

Coins, Gems, Jewellery, Diamonds fell out of the - what seemed like a small pouch. It was like a treasure trove.

Tarika's jaw dropped. Soon, a small glittering mountain had formed on Tarika's dining table.

'Phew' Newt sighed as the last fat gold coin fell with a loud 'Plunk' on the top of the mountain.

'What is all this?' said Daya after he had found words to speak.

'How did he hold all of that?' asked Tarika gaping at the treasure.

But nobody had noticed Abhijeet who had withdrawn his gun.

'Raise your hands high! I am a police Officer and I am arresting both of you for robbery' said Abhieet sternly pointing his gun at them.

'What? We haven't committed a robbery! You are quite mistaken sir!' Tony squeaked.

'Shut up and raise your hands high! I recognise that stolen jewellery. You are carrying dangerous wooden sticks along with you and I don't know what to call it exactly but it looks like you are followers of black magic and illegal stuff like that' said Abhijeet in a stern voice.

'What's black magic? Never heard of it, have you? And he's calling our wands "wooden sticks" Newt! That Muggle has certainly gone bonkers' said Tony chortling.

'Are they speaking foreign language? I don't understand a thing' said Daya in a low voice.

'Look we can explain... listen to us' said Tony but Abhijeet held up his hand.

'You will be given an opportunity to speak at the Police station! Daya, let's take them to the bureau' said Abhijeet and they began to advance the two.

'Newt, what do we do now?' Tony asked.

'Stand back!' said Newt suddenly pointing his wand at Abhijeet.

'Drop that stick or I'll shoot' said Daya warningly.

'That's not a stick!' Tony said angrily.

'Shut up Tony, they are Muggles for heaven's sake' snapped Newt.

'What are you talking about?' questioned Tarika.

'Newt -' Tony began but Newt cur him across, 'We will have to wipe off their memories.'

'We can't do that! We don't have the authorisation -'

'we don't have a choice, Tony!'

'I am sorry for whatever happened. Look, let me fix your house first' said Newt. Together they flicked their wands in one sweeping motion and the furniture repaired itself went back to its original place.

'How are you doing that?' Tarika asked in awe.

'I believe I told you to drop that stick!' shouted Abhijeet.

'Tony, we'll have to wipe off there memories. We can always explain ourselves to the ministry later' Newt whispered.

'Alright then' Tony nodded.

Together they raised their wands and pointing them at Daya Tarika and Abhijeet and shouted ' **Obliviate** '

Thin silvery light erupted from the tip of their wands and a dreamy sort of a look appeared on Daya, Abhijeet and Tarika's face.

'Who are you? What are you doing in my house?' Tarika questioned looking at Newt and Tony, with a air of surprise.

Newt sighed. Keeping a firm grasp on the Niffler he said to Tony, 'I think now it is safe for us to leave'

'Sorry, I guess we got to the wrong house.' said Tony and he and Newt walked out of Tarika's house.

Making sure, no one was watching them, they turned on spot and vanished.

 **O-o-o-o**

 **Next Day Morning, CID Bureau –**

A newspaper report on Daya's desk read:

 _CID team to the rescue: In a secret late night operation yesterday, CID team was successful in capturing the killer who had been involved in several robberies in past 24 hours. However, the CID refuses to divulge the name of the culprit. Now, we wonder what could be the motive behind keeping the culprit under wraps. Only time will tell._

The rest of the report was obscured by another news report bearing similar question.

Daya, Abhijeet and Tarika stared helplessly at one another as ACP paced to and fro in the bureau shooting them dirty looks every now and then.

'So, you are not going to tell me who the killer is then?' asked ACP Pradyuman.

'Sir I swear, we really don't remember anything.' said Daya.

'Sir all we remember is that there was some furry animal in Tarika's house. We were looking for him and then... I think we drove him away and then when we went to the kitchen we found all the stolen jewellery on Tarika's dining table. It was like magic really' said Abhijeet.

'Nonsense!' ACP Pradyuman yelled. 'Why would the thief return the stolen goods unless you caught him? I had never expected such unprofessional behaviour from you! What are playing at? Two senior officers and a forsensic doctor, all of whom are the most trusted officers indulge in something like this?' Disgusting!' ssid ACP Pradyuman.

The three of them hung their heads feeling guilty. It was incredible and they could understand ACP Pradyuman's anger as well. But it was the truth. Neither of them remembered how the stolen jewellery had landed on Tarika's dining table. They were totally blank.

'Do you how disasterous the consequences might be? The press reporters might think that the thief was among us and that's why we refused to disclose the name!' said ACP Pradyuman angrily.

'Sir no, we didn't do anything!' ssid Abhijeet aghast. 'You do believe us, don't you?'

'I do. But what explanation are we going to give to the Press and DCP sir?

'Sir, we will make something up. We will tell DCP sir that we found the stolen jewellery buried underground or something' said Abhijeet.

'Wow. Great. So you want me to lie to my Senior to cover up for you?' said ACP Pradyuman towering with rage.

'Sir we haven't done anything wrong. Please sir' said Daya in a pleading voice.

'Sir, please trust us; we are telling the truth. If we can do anything to prove to you that we are telling the truth, we will do it' said Tarika earnestly.

'Sir, please. Just trust us for once.' said Abhijeet

ACP Pradyuman looked at them for a moment and then sighed. 'I really don't know what to say but I think I can take your word for it. Though the mystery of this memory loss would always be the most intriguing mystery for me'

'Thank you, sir' said Abhijeet, Daya and Tarika together.

'Just one thing - the three of you are going to answer whatever questions the press askes you and DCP sir wants to meet you tomorrow. He has left a message that he wishes to discuss this case' said ACP Pradyuman.

'What?' said Abhijeet.

'Yes, Abhijeet and mind you, you should sound convincing. If you are able to do that, then consider that I have accepted your apologies. If not however-'

'No sir, we will do it' said Daya quickly.

'Good' said ACP Pradyuman and retired to his cabin.

'Bloody hell! If I ever find out who did this, I swear I'll kill him' said Abhijeet.

'Why can't we remember anything? It really a mystrey, rather a very scary one' said Tarika shuddering.

'Guys we can worry about that later. Let's decide what are we going to say to the press and DCP sir.' said Daya and the three of them set to work.

 ***** THE END *****

* * *

 **Terms to Know -**

1\. **Occamy** \- Plumed, two-legged winged creature with a serpentine body.

2\. **Magizoologist** – a person who studies magical creatures.

3\. **Muggles** – Non – Magic people

4\. **Bowtruckle** – A plant-like magical creature which is extremely useful to have around i f you need a lock picked.

5\. **Niffler** \- It is a creature with a long snout and a coat of black, fluffy fur. They are attracted to shiny things, which make them wonderful for locating treasure, but this also means that they could wreak havoc if kept (or set loose) indoors in search of treasure. Nifflers have a pouch on their bellies which holds far more than it seems possible, exactly like the effects of an Undetectable Extension Charm on a container which help them storing the treasure.

6\. **Obliviate** \- A memory charm resulting in erasure of recipient's memory.


End file.
